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Report
en_GB
Generative AI is reshaping the first stage of financial decision‑making. Nearly half of consumers have used AI tools, like ChatGPT, to help them choose a financial product, shifting a greater…
US
Banking and Payments
Artificial Intelligence (AI)
simple
US AI and Banking: 2026
"As third-party AI tools become a common starting point for product research, FIs must differentiate through personalized, contextual recommendations powered by customer relationships."
Generative AI is reshaping the first stage of financial decision‑making. Nearly half of consumers have used AI tools, like ChatGPT, to help them choose a financial product, shifting a greater share of research from banks’ owned channels to external platforms. While this shift is expected to grow over time, there is still a divide in consumers’ comfort with visible and invisible AI across broader financial contexts.
Consumers prefer AI when it’s in the background. Fraud monitoring and real‑time alerts are popular, likely because these tools are rooted in security and protection. However, when AI steps into the foreground through chatbots, automated advisory, or general customer service, comfort drops sharply, with nearly 60% preferring humans over AI for resolving account issues.
As AI becomes more central to banking, the challenge will be bridging these two modes. FIs must continue to strengthen the behind‑the‑scenes features consumers already rely on, while designing visible AI touchpoints to feel transparent, contextual, and supported by easy access to humans. Banks that strike this balance will foster trust as AI plays a larger role across the customer relationship.
This Report Looks at the Following Areas:
Market factors affecting AI and banking
Usage of AI tools in financial product search
Experience with AI-powered banking features
Preference for AI vs humans
Attitudes toward AI and banking
Collapse All
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
What you need to know
Outlook for AI and Banking
Opportunities
Contextual personalization will be a key differentiator for FIs in an AI-driven world
Graph 1: financial products bank-AI assistant helped with choosing, 2026
Humans edge out AI for financial advice, though the gap is close
Graph 2: preference for AI vs human, 2026
Reassure over data safety and isolation to overcome hesitations
Transparency and human availability are critical to easing AI concerns
Graph 3: top concerns with using AI-powered banking features, by generation, 2026
THE MARKET
Consumers gravitate toward third-party AI for financial guidance
Graph 4: AI tools used to help choose a financial product, 2026
AI-driven guidance will test the limits of financial regulation
ChatGPT integrations highlight adjacent opportunities for aggregators
Economic pressures will drive vulnerable consumers to AI for cost savings
THE CONSUMER
Usage of AI tools in financial product search
Half of banked consumers use AI to choose financial products
Consumers are most likely to leverage AI for help choosing core financial products
Gen AI is reshaping credit card decisions for prime consumers
Graph 5: use of AI tools to help choose a financial product, by self-reported credit score, 2026
FIs face a blind spot in AI-driven discovery
AI tools are finding a home with parents seeking financial products
Graph 6: use of AI tools to help choose a financial product, by parental status, 2026
Experience with AI-powered banking features
Two thirds of under-45s make use of AI-powered chatbots in banking
AI experiences are concentrated around immediate and recurring needs
Graph 7: usage/experience with AI-powered banking features, 2026
Embedding AI into day-to-day touchpoints will accelerate engagement
Technology that is meant to improve financial outcomes is passing by consumers that need it most
Graph 8: usage/experience with AI-powered banking features, by current financial situation, 2026
AI-powered credit tools serve the middle but miss the extremes
Graph 9: usage/experience with AI-powered banking features, by self-reported credit score, 2026
Ensure alignment with subprime consumers to avoid alienation
Preference for AI vs humans
Deploy human and AI support in combination to enhance the user experience
Leverage AI for monitoring, but deploy humans for resolution
Graph 10: preference for AI vs human, 2026
Human preference for credit decisions is highest at the extremes
Graph 11: preference for humans across credit card decisions, 2026
AI advisory will find its home in middle-wealth households
Graph 12: preference for AI vs human in managing an investment portfolio, by household investable assets, 2026
Attitudes toward AI and banking
AI in banking faces a tension between trust and personalization
Graph 13: attitudes toward AI, 2026
Familiarity with AI is shaping expectations, but control remains the red line
Graph 14: attitudes toward AI, by use of AI to help choose a financial product, 2026
Young adults are open to trading some control for value
Graph 15: attitudes toward AI, by generation, 2026
INNOVATION AND MARKETING
Bank of America downplays AI-specific branding for its leading virtual assistant
Experian’s launches ChatGPT integration
Atlantic Union Bank leverages AI to stop scams
Greenlight focuses on AI education
Frost leads with human availability as a counterpoint to AI-powered support
APPENDIX
The consumer
Consumer research questions
Consumer research methodology – US
US generation groups
Abbreviations
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